Gloriosa Daisy steps onto the stage for his final number. 
A hush falls over the crowd. Gloriosa Daisy. The Great Performer. 
He begins to sing and dance. 
It is a subtle reprise of his big summer number. He does not attempt the show stopper quality of his earlier performance. 
Instead, he expresses himself as he truly is, here in the Autumn garden. 
He revels in his current condition. 
He brings the crowd to tears with the subtle beauty of his aging petals. 
He pulls at their heart strings as he appears to die before their very eyes. 
A silence comes over the hall, broken only by the soft sobs of the audience. Is this it? Is this the tragic death of the beautiful prince?
The last gasp of the conquering hero?
No, my dears. NO! Gloriosa leaps into the air.
He is not dead. 
Stunningly, amazingly and unbelievably, Gloriosa blooms on.
The crowd leaps to its feet. YES! 
The indomitable spirit of Gloriosa Daisy shines brightly.
The crowd cheers wildly, reveling in the power of the flower who finds the strength for an Autumn Reprise. 
They cheer for their beloved hero who pulls out all the stops and keeps on blooming, even as the garden fades towards Winter.
Gloriosa Daisy. The Great Performer.
In Jim's Garden 
Takes a Bow – and Encore! 🙂
Gloriosa says “Thank You Thank You Thank You!” as he takes a bow a throws kisses towards the audience….. 🙂
Another great blog performance. Love the flowers too!
I Thank You. Gloriosa Thanks You. The Flowers Thank You. 🙂
Stunning! 🙂
Thanks. Good fun to watch. Good fun to capture. Good fun to write. 🙂
Bravo! Great performance! 😉
Thank you thank you thank you. Another fine evening on stage by the great Gloriosa Daisy. 🙂
Great and funny post 🙂 J’aime les détails et en particulier la fleur qui se déploie juste devant nos yeux. Yes, autumn comes quietly….
Merci. C’est ma fleur préférée . Il fleurit pendant trois mois, puis il recommence à l’automne. From the Summer Solstice to the Autumnal Equinox and on up to the hard frosts, Gloriosa Daisy shows off his beautiful yellows and reds throughout the garden. Good fun. 🙂
I so love this post! Beautiful, and yet hopeful! Well done, Jim.
Thank you Amy. Beautiful yet hopeful. What more could we ask? Have a wonderful equinoxial day. 🙂
Too good! Encore ..
Thank you. I believe the encore is on you and your southern hemisphere garden. 🙂
They are beautiful flowers! We had our first frost here this morning. At 35 degrees it was light and just colored the roofs a bit, but it told a tale of what’s on the way.
The blog world tells a harrowing tale. Snows in Saskatchewan, frosts in Minnesota and New Hampshire. Yikes. Even the first light frost has a huge impact here, as I grow many elephant ears which will flop at the slightest frost. Haven’t seen one yet. I’m hoping for several more weeks. Have a fine equinox! 🙂
Beautiful.
Thank you very much. 🙂
Love seeing the entire cycle of the flower…so beautiful because we know next spring it will happen again!
Thanks. Yes, this is a special moment in the year with this flower, as the old, established perennials are fading yet the new seedlings from this Spring’s sowing are just now blooming. It is a nice juxtaposition in the same time frame. Soon they will all pass and soon enough Spring will bring them all back again. 🙂
I require this prince for my garden. My courtiers are holding court. Ready to receive him. Bravo!!
Oh Thank You! The Prince will be more than happy to accommodate, I’m sure. He loves a good audience. 🙂
Lovely!
Thank you very much. And thanks for all of your excellent posts this summer. I just love your edible African garden. Always something new, different, interesting and – so it appears – delicious! Keep up the great work. 🙂
Thank you for such a lovely compliment. It means a lot to me being so new out there in the ether! All the best to you, Annabel
Applause, applause, beautiful pictures. Thank you for my wonderful breakfast entertainment Jim. – Sharon
You are most welcome, Sharon. Providing your breakfast entertainment is one of my favorite blog activities (Now, I’m not sure it is really an activity, but the blog world allows us to define that kind of thing how we want, doesn’t it.) Have a wonderful day. 🙂
Amazing!!!
Thank you. Thanks for reading, thanks for appreciating and thanks for letting me know. 🙂
breathtaking beauty!
Thank you very much Heartafire. I find it to be so myself. Hence my desire to share. So thanks for letting me share. 🙂
Great way to interpret a ‘Circle of Life’
Thanks. With all the fading flowers juxtaposed among the new bloomers, which are in reality this year’s seedlings, there is a bit of the circle of life visible right now. Thanks so much for reading. 🙂